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Home Insurance

Protect your most precious asset with a comprehensive home insurance. From basic home assistance to incidental expenses from the loss of your home, the right home insurance will give you peace of mind.

Frequently Asked Questions

Apart from Fire Insurance that protects the loss of the building structure, Home Insurance mainly protects the property inside of the unit, the responsibility of the third party, and other losses caused by an accident within the unit.

HDB Fire Insurance is mandated by the Housing and Development Board (HDB) as long as you have an outstanding HDB loan. Home Insurance is an opt-in protection plan which is highly recommended for the home owner, tenant and/or landlord.

HDB Fire Insurance covers the structure and fixtures owned by the Housing and Development Board (HDB). It is applicable only when it is damaged by fire but not your renovations and Home Contents. Home Insurance typically covers your renovations and Home Contents for more than 10 insured perils including fire, domestic explosion, bursting of pipes, theft and more.

Home Contents refers to any physical and movable household items or personal belongings including money and valuables kept on the premises that belong to you / family members.

Building refers to the building structure of your home. For HDB flats, condominiums, apartments or cluster houses, it will include the building structure (but not the foundations), fixtures and fittings based on the HDB’s or property developer’s standard specifications.

For landed properties such as bungalows, semi-detached and terrace houses, it will include the building structure, garages, swimming pool, terraces, gardens and other private areas you own and which the public does not have access to.

For Building, the sum insured should represent the cost of rebuilding or reinstating the building as new at the time of loss or damage. This excludes the foundations, drains and the value of the land.

For Contents, the sum insured should represent the full value of your home renovations, household contents and personal effects belonging to you and members of your household including any domestic servants living in your home at current day values. You must get the building, renovations, and contents insured for their full reinstatement or replacement value, otherwise, you will be considered to be under-insuring your premises/contents.

Example of under-insurance:

Cover

(A) Full reinstatement and replacement cost

(B) Insurance coverage you have chosen

Building and renovations

$500,000

$200,000

Contents

$50,000

$10,000

Under-insurance occurs when (B) is less than (A). In the above example, you are under-insured by $300,000 and $40,000 for your building/renovations and contents respectively.

If there is a damage of $100,000 to your building/renovations and $10,000 to your contents, you will be responsible to pay for $60,000 (60% of the damage on building/renovations) and $8,000 (80% of the damage on contents).

“First Loss” vs “Full Sum Insured” – This determines the value of the financial losses or damages claimable against the plan. Claims settled on a First Loss basis are without penalty for being under-insured. Under the “Average Clause”, the insurers can reduce payment on a claim by the percentage you are under-insured.

Valuables – Home Contents Insurance normally has a sub-limit for unspecified items. For full-cover, valuables must be itemised for insurer’s review and additional premium. Examples of valuables are watches, paintings, works of art, jewellery, antiques, precious stones and other collectible items.

Deciding sum insured for your home contents – The general rule of thumb is the replacement cost of your contents should it be completely destroyed.

Common exclusions – They may differ among insurers and hence it is prudent to take a closer look when doing comparisons.

An Insured Perils insurance policy covers only what is specifically noted in the policy. It is usually less expensive than an All Risks policy. Typical list of Insured Perils would refer to fire, lightning, earthquake, bursting of pipes, smoke damage, theft accompanied by violent or forcible entry into your home, etc.

An All Risks insurance policy covers everything except what is specifically excluded in the policy. It is usually more expensive than the Insured Perils policy. Common exclusions include loss or damage arising whilst the Insured Dwelling is undergoing renovation / construction, or through the willful act of the Insured and/or any member of his family, etc.

Enjoy 14 days Free-Look Period** from the day you receive your insurance policy. This means you can receive a full refund on the premium paid should you decide to cancel your policy within this period. Beyond the Free-Look Period, you may get a partial premium refund provided that no claim has been made on the policy.